


Beautiful Disaster

by exandriantrashpanda (topothesia)



Category: Critical Role (Web Series) RPF
Genre: Light BDSM, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-07-25
Packaged: 2019-06-16 04:46:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15429333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/topothesia/pseuds/exandriantrashpanda
Summary: A younger Matt meets a guy named Taliesin at a Renaissance Faire who introduces him to some new experiences.





	Beautiful Disaster

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for a prompt at the Critical Kink meme. Thanks, prompter! Once I saw OP's suggested scenario, I could not resist writing it, especially when I heard Matt talking about all of the terrible Anne Rice novels he'd read as a teenager during the "Caleb goes and buys smutty fiction" scene in C2E11.
> 
> Also, I know this isn't how Matt and Taliesin actually met, but that's why it's called real person fiction, right? Let's assume that Matt's mid-20s and Tal is late 20s here.

Matt doesn’t even know why he came to the Renaissance Festival, especially since most of his friends decided not to come. Even in his mid 20s, he still feels like a socially awkward teenager most of the time. He’s gotten better at acting confident in certain situations, but it still feels like, well, acting most of the time. 

And he has no idea why he’s approaching one of the performers, especially since the guy seems to be getting enough attention as it is. This is not a thing he normally does, but the act he saw was really good, and he just wants an excuse to talk to him for a minute. Plus this guy seems so confident and compelling -- like everything Matt doesn’t feel like he is or could ever be, on stage or off. He’ll just say hi, tell him he liked the act, and then leave. Be cool, he says to himself as he gets closer. 

“Hi, uh, I just wanted to say I really liked your act,” he says, forcing himself to look up at the other man.

“Thanks,” the other guy says, giving him a dazzling smile that makes Matt’s knees a little weak. Up close he’s even more fascinating than he was when performing. “I’m Taliesin,” the guy says. “Yes, that is my real name.” He holds out a hand.

“Matt,” Matt says, shaking it. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Matt,” Taliesin says, holding his hand for maybe a moment longer than Matt expected and then dropping it. 

Okay, Matt thinks to himself, that went better than expected, and now he’s going to leave this guy alone. Except that he doesn’t really want to, and so he scrambles for something to say: “I had a question about that one accent you did? I’m, uh, I’m an actor, and I’m trying to get better at accents. Could you tell me how you managed it?” 

“Well, the short version is that it’s all in where you put your tongue,” Taliesin says, and winks at him.“But the long version, well, that would take more time than I have today. Why don’t you meet me for a drink some time and we’ll talk shop?”

“Uh, sure, okay! That would be, uh, that would be great!” Matt says. He fumbles in his pocket for a notebook and flips over the pages where he’s been sketching out ideas for some game stuff. “Let me give you my email and my phone number,” he says, scrawling them out quickly and holding out the torn slip of paper.

Taliesin deftly plucks the slip from Matt’s fingers and tucks it away into a pouch at his belt. “I’ll be in touch. Right now, though, duty calls. It was nice to meet you, Matt,” he says, offering another dazzling smile. 

Matt does his best to smile back, and then Taliesin walks away. Matt thinks he hasn’t been this nervous since he asked a girl to be his Valentine in sixth grade only to have her initial yes turn into a humiliating no right in the middle of the cafeteria. He’s guessing Taliesin will lose his contact info. He’s pretty sure it would be better that way. Besides, even if Taliesin does get in touch, this isn’t a date. It’s just two guys talking shop. Nothing to be nervous about. Right?

It’s a complete surprise then when Matt comes home a month later to a message on his voicemail from Taliesin saying that he’s sorry he wasn’t in touch earlier, but now that he’s got a few weeks between gigs, he’d love to meet up with Matt sometime -- Thursday night good? -- and leaving a phone number. 

Matt surprises himself by calling back immediately and confirming plans for Thursday. He’s thankful that no one can see his hands shaking as he holds the phone. Thank God that there’s no such thing as video phones, he thinks. 

And maybe he takes a long time getting ready on Thursday night, trying to figure out what t-shirt and jeans to wear, carefully brushing his hair, but this isn’t a date. He likes girls in that way, but he’s pretty sure he doesn’t like guys like that. Maybe. And he’s only seen Taliesin on stage and then talked to him for all of a minute. A guy like Taliesin wouldn’t even be interested in someone like him, anyways, or he might not even be into guys. Surely spending some time in person will make these...feelings...go away and they’ll just be friends. He could really use some more friends. Or if it becomes a disaster, well, it’s not like they have to ever see each other again. He can avoid the Renaissance Faire forever if necessary. 

Even out of costume and without being “on” in a performing way like he was when they met, Taliesin is still compelling. Matt can’t completely hide that he’s nervous, but Taliesin is easy to talk to, drawing Matt out with funny stories about festival life and leading him into a fascinatingly technical discussion about different aspects of accent work and acting. What Matt thought would be an awkward half hour or so turns into many hours of conversation, and they’re pleasantly buzzed and laughing when last call happens. 

“Hey, do you want to go back to my place?” Taliesin asks. “I can show you that Sandman collection we were talking about earlier. It’s not far and you can still catch late night transit from there.”

“Uh, yeah, sure,” Matt says. “As long as you’re not a serial killer. I’ve made it this far without getting murdered by people I’ve just met and I’d like to keep my streak alive.”

“I promise I don’t bite. Unless you ask nicely,” Taliesin says, and winks again. 

Matt sternly tells himself to ignore the part where the thought of that just made his knees go a little weak and follows Taliesin out of the bar. 

A little while later, the two of them are squashed together on a lumpy futon flipping through comics together, the book balanced between them. Ordinarily Matt would feel weird being this close to someone he just met, but being next to Taliesin isn’t like that somehow. Maybe it’s the alcohol (although that’s wearing off), maybe it’s just...him? Matt realizes that he should probably get going, but he doesn’t want to stop being this close. He’d like to be closer, actually. Fuck it, he thinks, and leans in a little more under the pretense of flipping a page, ending up securely nestled against Taliesin. 

Taliesin looks down at him, scrutinizing his face. He looks up at Taliesin, hoping that Tal can’t tell how completely nervous he is, that he somehow can’t read “has never kissed a guy and has not really had all that much experience with girls for that matter either” from just looking at him. 

Taliesin raises the hand that was holding the book and places it gently on the side of Matt’s face. Matt doesn’t flinch but instead leans his head into Taliesin’s hand, hoping that this is enough of a hint, because he doesn’t think he can actually ask for what he wants. 

“Ah,” Taliesin says, as if he’s just seen what he needs to see, and then he kisses Matt soundly on the lips. Matt isn’t sure what to do, or if kissing a guy is somehow that much different, or where he should end up putting his hands, but Taliesin doesn’t seem to mind taking control, and Matt certainly doesn’t mind giving that up right now. When Tal’s hands slide into Matt’s hair and pull tight, Matt can’t keep himself from moaning into Tal’s mouth. Tal pulls harder and bites down on Matt’s lip; Matt moans again, louder, wanting more. 

Taliesin pulls back then, the two of them both breathing heavily and staring at each other. 

“All right, before this goes further, time for honesty. Have you ever even kissed a guy before?” Taliesin asks.

“No, but I’m not… completely inexperienced,” Matt says.

“Does this experience include kink?” Taliesin asks. 

“No, but I’ve read books. Lots of them. Not to mention Usenet,” Matt says.

Tal raises an eyebrow. “It’s not like an Anne Rice novel,” he says, sighing a little. “But you seemed to like me taking control there. You seemed to like it when I hurt you a little. Is that what you want? A little pain, a little control?”

Matt is suddenly blushing more than he ever has in his life, and he has to look at the floor before he evaporates from embarrassment. Is this all really happening? What does he even say to this offer, which he suddenly wants more than anything? “Uh, yeah. I mean, um, if you wanted to, that would be...nice?” Oh God, did he just say “nice” to the hot goth guy who just kissed him breathless and is staring at him like he could eat him alive? 

Taliesin laughs, but not mockingly. “Nice. Yes, I would find it...nice...to do that to you. With you. But we need some rules first.”

“Like, uh, like a safeword?” Matt says. 

“Well, at least the Internet taught you something useful,” Taliesin says. “Yes, a safeword, and you should probably tell me if there’s anything you really don’t want to do. Or, hey, if you don’t want to do this at all right now, that’s okay too. We can just make out for a while, or you can go home, or crash on the futon tonight. You’re gorgeous and I’d love to do this, but I don’t want to be that guy.”

Part of Matt wants to take the out that Taliesin has so graciously given, but another part of him, the bolder part that compelled him to walk up to Taliesin in the first place and return his phone call, tells that part to sit the hell down and enjoy the ride.

“I’m good,” he says, raising his head to look Taliesin in the face. “If you are.”

Taliesin gives him another dazzling smile. “Excellent. So. How do you want to do this?”

“I think you said something about biting me if I asked nicely?” Matt says, and blushes again. 

“Well,” Taliesin says, “Come here and ask me nicely, then.” 

When he thinks back on that night, Matt remembers very specific details but not always quite the entire picture. He doesn’t remember exactly what he said to inspire it, but he remembers how Taliesin’s teeth felt on his neck and shoulders. He’s pretty sure the bite that left the bruise on his throat that lingered for a week and caused him to have to carefully choose his wardrobe and arrange his hair was the one where Taliesin was also pulling his hair hard, angling his head back to expose his throat -- and the point where he seriously wondered if he was going to come in his pants from the sensation of that alone. 

“Oh, you are a delight,” Taliesin purrs in his ear. “I’m going to have so much fun with you.”

He can’t really remember at what point his shirt came off, but he remembers what Taliesin’s hands felt like on his wrists as Tal pinned him down on the futon and ground against him, kissing and biting him and whispering in his ear. It was just so good, so fucking good, how come no one had ever told him that letting go like this would feel so good?

He can’t really remember how they both ended up completely naked, even though ordinarily he doesn’t even like to be naked even when he’s alone -- it’s all a blur of commands and praise and wanting to please and wanting more touch, more kissing, more restraint, more sensation, more, just more, please?

He does clearly remember Tal kneeling beside him with one hand on his wrists and one hand on his cock and Tal’s voice in his ear: “What do you want?”

“I want to come,” he whispers.

“Oh, I think you can ask more nicely than that,” Tal says, stroking slowly, pushing down on Matt’s wrists with his other hand. 

Matt whimpers and struggles just a little, and Tal pushes down harder on Matt’s wrists but moves his hand away from Matt’s cock. 

“Do you want me to stop?” Tal asks, his voice deep and low. “Or do you want to ask me again?”

Matt isn’t sure if he can even make words at this point because all he is is want and need. “Please…” he manages.

“Please what?” Tal says, and Matt suddenly realizes that Tal is enjoying this too, that he is loving undoing Matt as much as Matt is loving being undone. 

“Please...touch me...kiss me...bite me...wreck me, fuck, please, please, more, please…” Matt moans, not even sure of what he’s saying at this point. 

“Well, when you put it like that,” Tal murmurs, “How can I say no?”

Tal bears down on Matt’s wrists hard and returns his hand to Matt’s cock and in a few short strokes Matt is coming so hard that his eyes roll back in his head and he forgets where he is for a minute, something he was pretty sure only happened in novels. He vaguely remembers Tal stroking his hair and murmuring soft words to him. 

“Can I… uh, can I get you off too?” Matt asks once he’s capable of forming words again. “Please?”

“God, yes,” Tal says hungrily. 

And then Matt is on his knees and Tal’s hands are in his hair and Matt’s really got no idea about how to do this right, but Matt is pretty sure that he’s not doing it wrong based on the noises Tal is making and the way Tal’s hands fist in Matt’s hair as he thrusts into Matt’s mouth. Matt feels like he could just stay here forever, held in place, doing what he’s told, being used in the best possible way. 

“Christ, Matt, your mouth is so fucking good, fuck, I’m gonna…” Tal chokes out.

Matt understands but just sucks harder because it feels like the right thing to do, and Tal’s hands tighten in Matt’s hair to the point where it’s almost bad-painful instead of good-painful, and then he feels Tal’s cock pulse into his mouth as Tal lets out a shuddering groan. It’s a little weird, but it’s not bad-weird, and it was definitely worth it. 

“Goddamn,” Tal pants, releasing his hold on Matt’s hair. “You’re certainly a quick learner.”

Matt doesn’t remember exactly when he got invited and decided to spend the night, although he does remember the awkwardness of waking up in a strange bed the next morning and wondering what exactly he was supposed to do next. But eventually they ended up at a shitty diner for breakfast, and after that they parted ways, saying they’d call each other. 

The next time Matt calls, Tal is off doing a gig. And then Matt starts seeing someone and while he doesn’t exactly forget what happened -- how could he? -- he’s not sure about the etiquette of calling back your one night stand after six months when you currently have a girlfriend to find out if you can just talk about geek shit some more. So he just doesn’t.

But he doesn’t exactly forget what it was like, and sometimes he wonders if he’ll ever be bold enough to ask for something like that again.


End file.
